TSMC German Plant to Employ 5,000 Workers This Summer; Apprenticeship Recruitment Underway

Central News Agency, Berlin, May 30. The TSMC Dresden plant has entered an accelerated phase of construction and talent deployment. Christian Koitzsch, President of the European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC), stated that the number of workers at the site will increase to over 5,000 this summer. Once the factory is operational, it is expected to employ about 2,000 people. Large-scale recruitment of talent and apprentices has already begun, and the company will participate in the Saxony vocational fair to cultivate local semiconductor talent. According to the German newspaper Handelsblatt, ESMC, established by TSMC, Bosch, Infineon, and NXP, is hiring on a large scale. Koitzsch told Handelsblatt at an event in Amsterdam on the 28th that the company has started large-scale recruitment, and among the 100 current employees, 40 are from Taiwan. Once all equipment is installed, the number of ESMC employees is expected to expand to 2,000. The TSMC Dresden plant is considered the most important semiconductor investment project in Europe in recent years and is currently the largest chip factory construction project in Europe. The factory is planned to start production by the end of 2027 and reach full capacity by around 2030, with production mainly supplying chips needed by the European automotive industry. As construction progresses, the demand for labor at the site is increasing rapidly. Koitzsch stated that about 1,200 workers are currently working at the site, and the number of workers will exceed 5,000 during the peak this summer. In addition, according to information posted by ESMC on the job site LinkedIn, ESMC will participate in two vocational fairs held in Saxony today and next weekend to introduce semiconductor career development to students, parents, and teachers, and to recruit students for apprenticeship training programs. Germany has a tradition of apprenticeship systems, valuing vocational education. Most vocational schools adopt a 'dual system,' where apprentices spend 70% of their time interning at companies and 30% in school classes. Unlike vocational high schools in Taiwan, German students usually sign apprenticeship contracts with companies after completing compulsory education, around the age of 15 to 16. According to Handelsblatt, in addition to the three major shareholders of ESMC, major European chip design companies such as STMicroelectronics and Nordic Semiconductor are also important customers. Germany has been actively promoting the layout of the semiconductor industry in recent years, hoping to enhance Europe's chip autonomy by attracting international giants to invest. In addition to the TSMC German plant, the new wafer fab being expanded by Infineon in Dresden will also officially open in July this year.